All in all it was a strong week for our roster making transactions rather difficult. The brightest star is of course Darrell Henderson. The former Memphis Tiger played 82-percent of his team’s snaps and dominated usage in all situations. While he was not able to punch in a score or provide much in terms of efficiency, his usage profile was that of an RB1.
Football is back! It’s been a minute, but we finally made it through. Now, we all begin our journeys of winning our leagues, watching some good ball, and maybe winning a few bets along the way. That’s where I come in. Betting the spread in the NFL can be tough, but it is not impossible. Over the season, for PlayerProfiler EDGE, I’ll be making picks against the spread for each game of the NFL season. Last year, I was well above .500, so hopefully that continues in 2022. Let’s get off to a great start to the 2022 season. Welcome back football!
A.J. Terrell finished 2021 ranked No. 1 in Coverage Rating, Catch Rate Allowed, Passer Rating Allowed, and Fantasy Points Allowed Per Target. Meanwhile, Michael Thomas has gone on to play in one game since their Week 13 matchup in 2020.
Amari Cooper had three top-10 scoring weeks last season. Two of those cornerbacks primarily tasked to guard him are out of the NFL. Outside of those games, Cooper had ZERO top-24 performances in 2021.
Josh Allen attempts to lead the Bills prolific offense to an opening night victory against the defending champs. He has at his disposal a duo of Stefon Diggs and Gabriel Davis who’ve compiled 31 touchdowns over the last two seasons. They patched arguably their only offensive hole this offseason with the drafting of James Cook, who will immediately see a fantasy relevant role.
The defending champs are undefeated on opening day under head coach Sean McVay. With Allen Robinson now in Matthew Stafford’s arsenal, this offense is not going to skip a beat from 2021. In fact, they’ll only be sharper. Cam Akers returns to the lineup fully recovered. With a rejuvenated offense and an undermanned Bills secondary, the Rams are in a great spot to keep the streak alive.
Sony Michel was cut before the season, giving Chase Edmonds more touches to handle at the head of the Miami backfield. Edmonds had over 40 receptions each of the last two seasons, and now joins Mike McDaniel’s RB-friendly offense. He projects to get most of the passing-down work and brings elusiveness, with a 29.6-percent (No. 12) Juke Rate and a 10.86 (96th-percentile) Agility Score.
Last season, the Bills allowed the lowest completion percentage in the league, snagging 19 interceptions to allowing 12 passing touchdowns. Tre’Davious White will be out, but rookie first-rounder Kaiir Elam comes in with Micah Hyde anchoring the secondary. With Von Miller coming off the edge, the Rams offense will have its hands full against a powerful Bills defense. Stafford does not have a favorable matchup this week.
The goal of this column is simple. Just as the hitchhiker attempts to achieve their destination without a consistent or known vehicle, we will reach your league championship relying on a mix of temporary solutions and unexpected revelations. I will attempt to stream the highest scoring season long RB2 slot we can, relying only on a finite pool of late round picks and the waiver wire. I will explain the parameters in detail at the end of the article.
The game will come down to how the offensive line can handle the pressure against Aaron Donald and Von Miller. Burrow only managed a 47.1-percent (No. 14) Pressured Completion Percentage. And for the Bengals to win, he will need to make big throws under pressure. On the other side of the coin, he ranks No. 1 in Clean Pocket Completion Percentage. He is also No. 1 with 8.8 Yards per Pass Attempt, But it helps if you’ve got talented teammates.
Now in Los Angeles, Matthew Stafford is surrounded by easily his best coaching staff and teammates. And it’s reflected in the metrics. His Touchdown Rate ranks No. 2 among quarterbacks with ten or more starts. And his 63.5 (No. 4) Total QBR puts him ahead of Patrick Mahomes. He also gets the benefit of throwing to outstanding pass catchers.
Today, we’ll look at the AFC championship matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Cincinnati Bengals, a rematch from Week 17 where Cincinnati scored in the last moments of the game and won 34-31. A key result of that victory, the Bengals won their first division title since 2009.
Once a young team with plenty of promise, the Bengals have given life to a franchise that had embodied mediocrity. Now they are four quarters away from the Super Bowl. I expect the Bengals to come out playing fast and pushing the tempo on offense; unfortunately for them, the offensive line may have trouble keeping the pace with its skill positions. Kansas City wins 35-27.
The more I read and research between these two teams, it seems the more in common the are with one another. The gunslinger quarterback, the alpha wide receiver, the efficient tight end, and even the opportunistic defense the schemes many different ways to find advantages on the field.
Both teams are peaking, playing strong, and lest we forget, last year the Chiefs beat the Bills 38-24 in the AFC championship. Do yourself a favor; sit back and enjoy two superior teams scheme against each other in a Divisional tilt that has the potential to be a classic showdown.
It’s Wildcard Weekend in the NFL, and this matchup has my nostalgia cranked up all the way with these two storied franchises. It hasn’t always been pretty for both of these teams since the mid-90’s, but thankfully we have two talent rich squads with incredible athletes performing at the absolute highest level.
